Maternity skirt



NOV. 25, 1952 ROOT 2,618,784

MATERNITY SKIRT Filed March 29, 1948 gin:

El IE Ni/a M. Roof INVENTOR.

MawqvM Patented Nov. 25, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT ossice MATERNITY SKIRT Nila M. Root, Eugene, Greg.

Application March 29, 1948, Serial No. 17,789

Claims.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in maternity garments and the primary object of the present invention is to provide a maternity skirt having a plurality of pleated panels facilitating comfortable positioning of the skirt about the waist of a user.

Another important object of the present invention is to provide a maternity skirt including a group of pleated sections which are disposed at selected areas of the skirt and an adjustable drawstring waist band for selectively adjusting the circumference of the skirt.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a maternity skirt that is quickly and readily adjusted by a user in a convenient manner and which is extremely comfortable in use.

A still further aim of the present invention is to provide a maternity skirt that is simple and practical in construction, strong and durable in use, neat and attractive in appearance, relatively inexpensive to manufacture, and otherwise well adapted for the purposes for which the same is intended.

Other objects and advantages reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure l is a perspective view of the present maternity skirt looking at the front thereof;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of the present maternity skirt looking at the rear thereof;

Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken substantially on the plane of broken section line 3-3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary elevational view of the rear portion of the present skirt looking from the inside; and,

Figure 5 is an enlarged sectional view taken substantially on the plane of section line 5-5 of Figure 4.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, wherein for the purposes of illustration, there is disclosed a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the numeral it represents a skirt of any suitable material having an upper edge or waist portion l2.

Extending downwardly from the upper edge I? of the skirt Hi, there is a forward preferably arcuate opening to the edges 14 of which are secured by stitching or the like It the straight side edges l8 and arcuate lower edge 20 of a pleated forward panel 22, as shown best in Figure 3 of the drawings.

A rear arcuate opening is also formed in the rear portion of the skirt ii] and extends downwardly from the upper edge 12 with the edge 24 of the opening secured by stitching or the like 26 to the straight side edges 23 and arcuate lower edge 39 of a pleated rear panel 32.

Secured by stitching or the like 34 to the inner face of the skirt H3 at the upper edge E2 of the skirt, is a pair of straps 36 and 38, the forward ends it and 32 of which terminate adjacent the forward pleated panel 22 and the rear terminals 44 and it of which overlap each other and are removably secured together by hooks 48 and eyes 50.

Mounted in a usual casing under the straps 3t and 38, is a pair of draw strings 5'2 and 54 that slidably extend through apertures in the pleats of the forward pleated panel 22 and the rear pleated panel 32. The forward ends of these draw strings and rear ends of these draw strings are tied together at substantially the center of the forward panel 22 and rear panel 32.

Although disclosed in the drawings, the pleated panels 22 and 32 are formed of a yarn material, the same could be constructed of an elastic or resilient material without deviating from the scope of the present invention.

Obviously, a suitable number of openings and pleated panels may be applied to the skirt at selected areas to further add to the adjustability of the present skirt.

Having described claimed as new is:

1. A maternity garment comprising a skirt including an upper waist-receiving end, said skirt having a forward vertical opening and a rear vertical opening, said openings extending downthe invention, what is wardly through the waist receiving end of said skirt, a forward panel secured along its marginal edge to the edges of the skirt defining the forward opening, said forward panel including a plurality of vertical pleats, a rear panel secured along its marginal edge to the edges of the skirt defining the rear opening, said rear panel including a plurality of vertical pleats, a drawstring carried by the upper end of the skirt extending through the pleats of both panels for selectively adjusting the circumference of the skirt, a pair of straps secured to the inner surface of the skirt adjacent the upper waist-engaging end and overlying portions of the drawstring, said straps having forward and rear end portions, the forward end portions of said straps terminating adjacent the forward panel, the rear end portion of one of said straps extending across the rear panel,

3 and fastening means securing the rear end portions of said straps together, said pleated panels being considerably wider than the width of the openings when the pleats are removed to permit the waist-receiving end of said skirt to be enlarged.

2. A maternity garment comprising a skirt including a waist portion having an upper edge, said skirt having a forward elongated vertical opening and a rear elongated vertical opening, said openings extending downwardly through the upper edge of the waist portion, a forward panel of a width considerably wider than the forward opening secured to the skirt in registry with the forward opening, said forward panel having a plurality of vertical pleats, a rear panel of a width considerably wider than the rear opening secured to the skirt in registry with the rear opening, said panels including upper edges flush with the upper edge of the waist portion, said rear panel also including a plurality of vertical pleats, a drawstring extending through the pleats of both panels adjacent and below the upper edges of the panels, and a pair of straps secured to the inner surface of said waist portion and including forward spaced ends terminating adjacent the forward panel, one of said straps having a rear end terminating adjacent the rear panel, the other of said straps having a rear end extending horizontally across the inner face of said rear panel, and means detachably connecting the rear ends of said straps together.

3. The combination of claim 2 wherein the ends of said drawstring are tied in registry with and exteriorly of the rear panel.

4. A maternity garment comprising a skirt having an upper waist embracing end and forward and rear portions, each of said forward and rear portions having a vertical opening therein extending completely through the waist embracing end of said skirt, a forward pleated panel secured to the rear portion across the opening in the rear portion, a forward pleated panel secured to the forward portion across the opening in said forward portion, a pair of straps secured to the inner face of said upper waist embracing end and having forward and rear ends, the rear ends of said straps being located adjacent the rear panel, interconnecting means between the rear ends of said straps and extending across the rear panel, and a drawstring extending through the pleats of said panels, said pleated panels being considerably wider than the width of the openings when the pleated panels are stretched flat, to permit enlargement of the waist embracing end of said skirt.

5. A maternity garment comprising a skirt having an upper waist embracing end and forward and rear portions, each of said forward and rear portions having a vertical opening therein extending completely through the waist embracing end of said skirt, a forward pleated panel secured to the rear portion across the opening in the rear portion, a forward pleated panel secured to the forward portion across the opening in said forward portion, a pair of straps secured to the inner face of said upper waist embracing end and having forward and rear ends, the forward ends of said straps terminating adjacent the forward panel, the rear end of one of said straps extending transversely across the rear panel and overlapping the rear end of the other strap, and interconnecting means between the rear ends of said straps.

NILA M. ROOT.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file 'of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 656,814 Elliott Aug. 28, 1900 914,414 Hook Mar. 9, 1909 2,259,236 Wellins et al. Oct. 14, 1941 

